I apologize for glare in some of these images - some posters were shiny and all the beads were shot through glass, which is sometimes tricky to deal with. I felt all of these were important images to share.

The enormous floral arrangement was created entirely of seed beads, in the style of French beaded flowers.

The amber case has been shown before, but I couldn't resist! It's a most large phenolic strand, residing with examples of genuine amber.

Hi Joyce,

I'm glad you like this case, since I designed and executed it. The beads within the H U G E imitation strand are mostly actual copal. Old copal beads are not seen very often—so this is an impressive strand.

For anyone who hasn't seen the case, the left side, shows a variety of great coral beads. Then, the drawers below also show additional coral and amber beads and simulants.

JDA.

Jamey, thanks! Please share whatever comes to mind on this thread. I am so happy that I finally got there.

2 views of lovely specimens. Notice the faience pieces, including the little fist.

Millefiori, cane, tong molded

These two wall panels were designed and executed by Elizabeth Harris, for the original Museum in Prescott, quite a few years ago. I revamped them about six years ago, changing a few attributions and replacing or gluing broken specimens. The idea behind the panels is to show all the various types of wound (lampwork) and drawn beads from Venice, in contrast to a few earlier beads and from other industries (such as Czechoslovakia—since it includes molded beadmaking, not practiced much at Venice).

JDA.

In this picture, the bead labelled "Russian - Compound Tube".....
At Native American sites along the Columbia River, many examples of this whitish core facetted bead are found, along with the various colors of clear facetted glass beads having no core.
Which is the older form, where were each likely made, and when were each form made??

Hello Jim,

It is because of the finding of these beads in the NW, up to Alaska and down into CA, that they are popularly called "Russian" beads.

The beads were actually manufactured in Bohemia/Czechoslovakia, in the 19th C. If they had any part in the Fur Trade, it would have transpired late in that time. In earlier years, these beads were presumed to be older than is the case (as often happens). Here in N. CA, they are often recovered with cornaline d'Aleppo (Venetian white-heart) beads, that post-date ca. 1830.

I am not aware that anyone has seriated "Russian" beads, with any indication that any particular style or color is earlier than any other(s). I think they are too recent for archaeology to help much; and they don't appear on many (or any?) sample cards I can think of that are dated.

I would not ascribe any meaning to the lighter colored base layers. These exist to make the blue glass appear brighter and paler.

In the forty years I have been documenting beads, of this type, I have seen various blues, turquoise blue, teal blue (almost green), golden yellow, red, violet, brown, black, white, and colorless specimens. I think brown is among the more rare colors—and I am pleased I have a strand of them, from W. Africa.

Jamey

Thomas examining contents of a drawer, and a peek inside the case.

The Peter Francis Jr. Archive is quite well-organized. Plenty of volunteer hours could still be well-absorbed into this project, though. Such as digitizing the photo slides from the ex-Michael Heide collection. We saw one of your books there, Stefany!

Here's Thomas reviewing some of the Michael Heide slides. The gray cases are full of research papers and against the wall are some of the books and publications.

Ms. Karen Karn is The Bead Museum collections manager. She and a team of volunteers keep the collections archived, inventoried, and in order. They were hard at work the day we visited. It will be their job to keep the museum contents in order through whatever transitions unfold over the coming months.

I am very sorry to see this institution close. For bead collectors, we have for 24 years been able to explain that beads are so very important, there is a museum just for beads! It has validated our pursuit. It is truly a sad event that first the Bead Museum in Washington D.C. closed in 2008, and now, on March 12, 2011, we will lose The Bead Museum in Glendale as well. We hope that the collection can remain intact and on public display wherever it's destination may be.

Photos and stories like this are so very valuable - and enjoyable! Next time, hand the camera to Thomas and you get in the shot! (grin)

Here in Southeastern PA, the Barnes Foundation Museum (largest collection of Renoir paintings stateside) will most to a location downtown near the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Many fought this decision, but the museum is is too costly to upkeep; they are hoping that more tourists find their way when it's downtown. Pity. The original grounds are wooded and glorious; and it was Albert Barnes' wish that it always remain there, adjacent to his home. Alas, this will not be the case. I mention this because not only is it the closing of a museum, but because there are many African Artifacts placed amongst the art treasure originals, that may be of interest to some viewers of this forum. A little off topic; I apologize for that.

I'm reading this in Manila, so far away, but now I can imagine the place - what a wonderful resource for the public, and what a pity it is to be lost.
I wonder if perhaps we enthusiasts and experts are doing enough to interest others in beads. The study of beads is not just a narrow speciality, but is also a study of peoples, history, technologies, trade routes, migration, etc etc. Maybe more should be done to open up the fascination of bead study.

I revisited the 'Gold of our Ancestors' exhibition at the Ayala Museum in Manila again yesterday. It is an exhibition of pre-hispanic jewellery, that is, the artefacts of the Filipino people before their hundreds of years of colonisation began.
Amongst the glorious exhibition are golden beads with granulations and wire decorations so intricate and beautiful it is not too much to say they are a symbol of resurgent national pride in the Filipino ancestors who created such beads.

(Unfortunately I was not allowed to take photos).

So beads carry this great symbolic significance, too.

Anyway, thank you Joyce for the visit.